Sports Fix

Big East Awards - Syracuse's Wes Johnson was named Big East Player of the Year and Orange coach Jim Boeheim was named Big East Coach of the Year Tuesday evening! We'll have more later, but a complete surprise for Johnson to win over Villanova's Scottie Reynolds.

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MMSF Top 10 - Every Tuesday we give you the true top ten best college basketball teams in the country. This is not the way we think the NCAA tournament will look like in March, rather it's just the best ten for this particular week in college hoops. With that in mind here is the MMSF Top 10! (last week in parenthesis)

Kansas - 29 - 2 (2) - It looks like Kansas will get Texas Tech, Texas A&M, and possibly Baylor/Kansas State in the Big 12 tournament. In other words, the overall number one seed for the NCAA is the Jayhawks.
Syracuse - 28 - 3 (1) - I think SU has a more complete resume and more complete team (not more talented) than Kentucky. Win the Big East this week (possibly against #22 Georgetown, #10 Villanova, and #6 West Virginia) and the Orange earn the second one seed.
Kentucky - 29 - 2 (3) - When I rank teams higher than UK, or talk about how their youth is going to hurt them, it's not because I don't love John Wall or DeMarcus Cousins. I think those things because I have watched Kentucky a lot this year.
Purdue 26 - 4 (7) - Since Robbie Hummel's injury the Boilermakers are 3 - 1. Therefore, I am done punishing this team for Hummel's absence until it actually hurts Purdue.
Ohio State 24- 7 (5) - It's up to either Purdue or the Evan Turners to snag that final number one seed for the NCAAs. If one of these two wins the Big Ten they will get that one seed, remember though Purdue won it last year.
Duke 26 - 5 (6) - Did the voters or the fans realize that Duke's beat down of North Carolina Saturday night wasn't anything but expected? Duke went 1 - 1 this week and hasn't beaten a quality team, outside of Maryland at home, all year. There won't be a ranked opponent for the Blue Devils until the finals of the ACC (assuming Maryland makes it that far).
West Virginia 24 - 6 (8) - I argued all year that WVU didn't have a quality win on the season. The 'Neers kept dropping big games at home (SU,'Nova) and lost at Purdue and Pittsburgh. Saturday's win at Villanova, however, sold me that Bob Huggin's team is playing the right way.
New Mexico - 28 - 3 (10) - How good will that Mountain West tourney going to be this week? The Lobos, BYU, UNLV, I would rather watch the MWC than the Pac-10!
Kansas State - 24 - 6 (6) - K State dropped a huge game at Kansas on Wednesday and a 'No Way Should They Lose That' game at home against lowly Iowa State on Saturday. Long story short on Frank Martin's Cats, they are decent, but not top three seed worthy.
Villanova 24 - 6 (9) - The Cats have lost three of their last six games with two of those losses coming at home. I would normally be jumping off the bandwagon, but I have said all year, I like Nova as a three seed way more than a one seed.

- It's conference tournament time! So basically there will be a number of upset, close calls, and bubbles bursting over the next six days. Thus, no need to tell you what to watch or who will lose because so much drama will go down that it would be impossible to predict. SU fans, watch Kansas and Kentucky and how they do in their respective conference tournaments. Should the Orange win the Big East and those teams falter there is a chance the 'Cuse could get back to the overall number one seed.

Mon - Fri @ 4 p.m. ESPN Radio 1410

Poll Question - We unknowingly triggered a fan war between West Virginia and Syracuse supporters yesterday when we asked you who the Big East Player of the Year was yesterday. Da'Sean Butler won with over 1,500 votes (thank you 'Neers fans, make yourself at home). Today we're going to probably anger you WVU fans with this poll question, who is the Big East Coach of the Year?

- Your choices today consist of Jim Boeheim, head man of the #3 Syracuse Orange. Boeheim's squad is the Big East regular season champion after being picked to finish sixth in the conference by the media and having to replace three starters. Another possible winner of the coveted Coach of the Year could certainly be Buzz Williams of Marquette. Williams also had to replace three starters and his Golden Eagles were picked to finish in the bottom portion of the 16 team league, yet Marquette finished fifth and should make the NCAA tournament. Lastly, the final choice is Pittsburgh head coach Jamie Dixon who also had to replace key starters (DeJaun Blair and Sam Young) and everyone thought Pitt would be lucky to make the N.I.T. Well, Dixon's Panthers are one of the favorites for this week's Big East tournament.

- A key theme amongst the nominees today, all three guided their teams to unexpected results after losing valuable leadership on the court. Well, who ya got? Boeheim, Williams, or Dixon?

- Scroll down and vote!

Mon - Fri @ 4 p.m. ESPN Radio 1410

Today's Show - Tuesday Edition - The Big East Conference will award Player of the Year and Coach of the Year today and we will have thoughts on those two awards. Plus, it is the first day of the Big East tournament and Mike Waters of the Syracuse Post Standard will join us live from Madison Square Garden and we'll talk your favorite memories of the Big East tourney (Gerry's run in '06, six overtimes, Pearl Washington)!

- Also today, we'll start our team by team preview in Major League Baseball and talk my draft strategy for our fantasy baseball league! Tune in for that and much more at 4 p.m. on ESPN Radio 1410!

Mon - Fri @ 4 p.m. ESPN Radio 1410

Morning Hot Links -"Served up hot and fresh Monday through Friday!"

3-9-10

- Today starts one of my favorite times of the entire year as the Big East Conference tournament gets underway at Madison Square Garden. Although I am not a fan of all 16 teams making the tourney, it does provide us with that much more compelling basketball to watch! Here is a preview of the tournament, remember that the top four teams do not get going until Thursday. Included in that wait is the now #3 ranked Syracuse Orange (who play Thursday at noon). (syracuse.com - espn.com)

- In awards handed out on Monday, Syracuse sophomore forward Kris Joseph was named the Big East Conference's Sixth Man of the Year. Joseph is the third leading scorer on the conference's best team, yet he is not a starter. I have to believe in one year from now Joseph will be in the discussion for First Team All Big East. Big Easy Defensive Player of the Year went to Rutgers' Hamady Ndiaye. Ndiaye averaged 4.5 blocks per game for a horrible Scarlet Knights team. Syracuse's Andy Rautins, the MMSF Defensive Player of the Year, averaged over two steals per game (leading the conference) on the best team in the league. Ndiaye winning really doesn't seem to add up to me. (syracuse.com)

- Although we have to wait until later today for the Big East Conference to hand Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim Coach of the Year, the long time Orange head man has been awarded that already. Boeheim, who never has been named Coach of the Year nationally, was named just that by the Sporting News. Boeheim should be a lock to win that award across the board from every major media outlet. (sportingnews.com)

- For a team in any sport at any level to win 70 straight games is amazing. I don't care if it's football, baseball, or even wiffle ball. Last night, in women's college basketball, the Connecticut Huskies won their 71st straight game breaking their own record! There is dominance in sports and then there is the Husky program who now have won over 70 games in a row twice this decade. (norwichbulletin.com)

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